How to transfer all data from Honor to Xiaomi Redmi: from contacts to apps

Why Data Transfers Between Honor and Xiaomi Need a Special Approach

The transition from Honor to Xiaomi Redmi is not just a brand change, but a transition between two different ecosystems: Huawei Mobile Services (HMS) and Google Mobile Services (GMS). Even if your Honor runs on EMUI with Google services and Redmi runs on MIUI, the nuances of data portability remain. The main problem is that standard tools like Google Account or Xiaomi Migration don’t always properly process files from proprietary Honor applications like Huawei Gallery or Honor Messages.

In this article, we will discuss 5 working ways to transfer data, from official tools to workarounds for complex cases. MIUI, Because this process is often accompanied by losses or duplication, you will also learn how to avoid common mistakes, such as when contacts are transferred without linking to accounts or photos are lost. EXIF-data.

Before you start, check:

• 🔋 Charge of both phones is not less than 50% (transfer can take up to 1 hour).
• 📶 Stable Wi-Fi connection (for cloud-based methods) or cable USB-C to USB-C (forward-transfer).
• 📱 Xiaomi Redmi should have at least 10 GB of free space (temporary files take up a lot of space).

Method 1: Official Xiaomi Migration app (fastest method)

Xiaomi Migration tool (built into MIUI) is designed to transfer data from Android devices, including Honor.

• 📞 Contacts (including groups and notes).
• 📷 Photo and video (saves folder structure).
• 💬 Communications (only) SMS, no messaging!).
• 📅 Calendar and notes (if synced with Google).

How to use:

1. On Xiaomi Redmi, go to Settings → About Phone → Data Transfer (or find Migration through search).
2. Select Android as the source and follow the instructions on the screen.
3. On Honor, download Xiaomi Migration from AppGallery (if there is no Google Play).
4. Connect your phones to a single Wi-Fi network or use it. QR-direct-connection.

⚠️ Note: If you are on Honor EMUI 12+, You may need to temporarily disable Secure Data Mode in the Developer Settings (Settings) → System system → For developers → Turn off "Transmission Protection" or else MIUI Cannot read some files.

Disable battery optimization for Migration app

Make sure that Honor has USB debugging enabled (if you use a cable)

Close all background apps on both phones

Check that Xiaomi has turned off the power saving mode-->

Advantages of the method:

Method 2: Transfer your Google Account (Reliable, but not for everything)

If you've used Google services on Honor, most of the data is already synced to the cloud. On Xiaomi Redmi, just log in to the same account, and:

• 📞 Contacts, calendars and notes (Google Keep) will be restored automatically.
• 📷 Photos and videos from Google Photos will be downloaded when you first connect to Wi-Fi.
• 🎵 Music and documents from Google Drive will be available through the relevant apps.

How to check sync on Honor:

1. Open Settings → Accounts → Google.
2. Make sure that sync is enabled for Contacts, Calendar, Google Photos and other services.
3. Manually start synchronization by pressing More → Sync now.

⚠️ Attention: Communications (SMS/MMS) Application data (such as chat histories on Telegram or WhatsApp) is not transferred through Google Account.

To transfer messages, use third-party applications:

• 📲 SMS Backup & Restore (Saves) SMS into XML, restore to Xiaomi).
• 🔄 Super Backup & Restore (Serious) SMS, call-log).

Method 3: Direct Transfer over OTG Cable (for large data volumes)

If you have more than 50GB of data (like a RAW photo collection or 4K video), cloud services may be too slow, in which case use an OTG-enabled USB cable (or USB-C to USB-C adapter).

Step-by-step:

1. Connect Honor to Xiaomi Redmi via cable.
2. On Xiaomi, select File Transfer (MTP) mode in the notification panel.
3. Open the File Manager MIUI and go to the section. USB-device.
4. Copy the right folders (DCIM, Downloads, Pictures, etc.) to internal memory or SD-map.

Important nuances:

• 📁 folder Android/data It contains application data, but it is pointless to transfer it – these files will not be seen on Xiaomi due to different storage structures.
• 🔒 If files are not copied, check permissions: Personal Data Protection may be enabled on Honor (disabled in Settings) → Security → Application authorizations).

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Before copying, sort files by date of change (File Manager → Sort → Date) so you can only transfer current data, saving time.

Method 4: Transfer applications and their data (without loss of progress)

Standard methods do not carry data from applications, such as saves in games, WhatsApp settings or Viber history.

For messengers:

• 💬 WhatsApp: Use the built-in Backup feature in Google Drive (on Honor) and restore to Xiaomi when you first launch.
• 📱 Telegram: data is stored in the cloud, just log into the account on a new phone.
• 🔵 Viber: backup is created manually in Settings → Account. → Backup copy.

For games and applications:

• 🎮 Helium (Carbon Backup) – backs up application data (requires) ROOT on some devices).
• 🖥️ Titanium Backup is a powerful tool, but it only works with the help of a computer. ROOT-rights.
• ☁️ Cloud-based saves (e.g. Google Play Games) – automatically synced when logged in to your account.

⚠️ Note: Some applications (e.g. banking) prohibit data portability for security reasons, and you will have to reconfigure them.

Cloud services (Google Drive, Mi Cloud)

Direct cable transfer

Special Applications (Migration, Helium)

Manual copying of files

Another way.-->

Method 5: Transfer over a computer (for advanced users)

If you need complete control of the process or previous methods have failed, use a computer (Windows/Mac).

• 📂 Shifting hidden files (for example, application configurations).
• 🔄 Convert formats (e.g., backup of Huawei Backup to readable format).
• 🛠️ Data recovery after a failed transfer.

Instructions:

1. Connect Honor to your PC via USB and enable File Transfer.
2. Copy all the necessary folders (DCIM, Documents, Movies, etc.) to your computer.
3. Connect Xiaomi Redmi and transfer files to internal memory.
4. For app backups, use ADB: adb backup -apk -obb -shared -all -f backup.ab (this will create a backup.ab file that can be restored to Xiaomi via adb restore backup.ab).

Working with ADB will require:

• 🖥️ Install Platform Tools from developer.android.com.
• 🔧 Turn on Debugging. USB on both phones (Settings) → The phone. → Build Number – Press 7 times, then return to Settings → System system → For developers).

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Use your computer if you want to transfer data from proprietary Honor apps (such as Huawei Health or Honor Club) and their backups are often encrypted and not read on other devices without conversion.

What to do if the data is not transferred or transferred incorrectly

Typical post-transfer problems and their solution:

If after the transfer Xiaomi Redmi began to slow down:

1. Reboot the phone.
2. Clear the cache in Settings → Storage → Clear the cache.
3. Turn off automatic sync for unnecessary accounts.

FAQ: Frequent questions about data portability from Honor to Xiaomi